Why You Should Test Your Dog For Heartworms

If it’s summer, spring, fall, or winter, your companion animals require year-round protection against heartworms as well as other parasites. Although visiting your vet for a yearly heartworm check-up is among the best things you can do as a caring dog owner, it’s essential to consider why heartworm tests and inspections are so necessary.

Does Your Pet Require Heartworm Testing Every Year?

Once every year, your dog can have a heartworm check-up to see whether heartworms infected him in the course of the previous season. A pet with heartworm will take several months to test positive on something like a heartworm test. As a result, checking once a  year—usually when his heartworm drug prescription is reauthorized makes sense. Like many illnesses, the sooner you detect the heartworms, the higher the chances of recovery are. The worm can cause deadly harm to a dog’s heart, arteries, and lungs when heartworm illness is not diagnosed and handled.

Why Should Your Dog Be Tested While He Is On Constant Heartworm Preventive Measures?

If you are a cautious dog owner who maintains your dog on heartworm control all year, that’s a reasonable question to ask. For this case, the justification for the annual dog test is to validate that his preventive program is effective. Although heartworm treatments are very successful, dogs will still become affected.

What is the reason for this? Simple clumsiness is a typical cause. Even missing one dosage of a monthly prescription, or administering it late, will make a dog vulnerable. And if you complete all of your tasks correctly and on schedule, there is no certainty. While their parents aren’t around, some dogs cough out the heartworm tablets. Some may cough out their pills or rub off a heartworm drug applied topically. Any one of these situations could put your pet at risk of contracting heartworm.

In Addition To A Puppy,  Do Your Cats Also Require Heartworm Prevention?

Cats, similar to dogs, can contract heartworm illness. Although cats are not quite as susceptible to heartworm infection as dogs, just one or two heartworms will make a cat really ill. As a result, the American Heartworm Organization advises all cats and dogs to be protected all year. As a result, cats with heartworm illness may or may not be infected with the worms. It can be difficult to diagnose. Usually, veterinarians perform heartworm bloodstream checks on cats before placing them on treatment for the first time; however, they later focus on treatments like chest x-rays or ultrasound to validate diagnoses.

Often keep in mind that the safest defense against heartworm illness is a strong defense.

Conclusion

Yearly monitoring will significantly mitigate this damage by detecting heartworm involvement sooner. Ensure your pets are on a heartworm preventative so they don’t get ill. Heartworks can be very invasive, so it is imperative to get your pets checked and treated.